Hanging a Wall Cabinet

[Slavo]

How would you hang a wall cabinet? The only methods I can think of are:

1. screw through the back of the cabinet into the wall
2. use cleats (see attached)
3 route key holes in the back to hang off screws

the problems I see are:
1. you'll see screw heads in the back of your nice cabinet
2. the cabinet will be proud of the wall (i.e. gap of thickness of cleat); and
3. may not be strong enough to support or limited spots for keyholes, especially if using a frame and panel back.

[silentC]

the cabinet will be proud of the wall (i.e. gap of thickness of cleat);
Not if the back is recessed to the depth of the cleat, or you leave the side panels off and scribe them to the wall after hanging the cabinet.

[MajorPanic]

A simple fix is rip a board down it length @ 45°.
Attach the downward facing taper to the cabinet & the upward facing taper to the wall.
Don't forget to add a spacer piece to the bottom of the cabinet the same thickness as the timber ripped @ 45° :cool: :D

[Groggy]

A simple fix is rip a board down it length @ 45°.
Attach the downward facing taper to the cabinet & the upward facing taper to the wall.
Don't forget to add a spacer piece to the bottom of the cabinet the same thickness as the timber ripped @ 45° :cool: :D
These are known as "French cleats" and are ideal if recessed into the back as mentioned previously. This is a good way to hang heavy cabinets.

Another (less attractive) method is to use an upper and lower brace and drill through to a stud for fastening.

[Slavo]

Thanks for the replys Silent, Major & Groggy.
Major, that is sort of similar to what I was trying to show, except I showed a rebated cleat and a spacer cleat as opposed to a 45 degree cleat.
Silent, recesseing the cleat could be an option but in the display cabinets I have seen they have had flat backs.

[DPB]

French cleats are the most secure and will hold the weight of the cabinets filled with dishes, etc.

But there are two considerations when using these.

You need to allow enough room above the top of the cabinet to lift it up and drop it so that the two cleats mate. Failing to do this is a trap for new players.
To hide the fact that the cabinets are sitting away from the wall by the depth of the cleats, it is normal to use an end panel (assuming that the ends are exposed) that is deeper than the depth of the cabinet by the depth of the cleat. You may also wish to attach a panel under the cabinet for the same purpose.

[The Hornet]

A simple fix is rip a board down it length @ 45°.
Attach the downward facing taper to the cabinet & the upward facing taper to the wall.
Don't forget to add a spacer piece to the bottom of the cabinet the same thickness as the timber ripped @ 45° :cool: :D
This is the method i used with my Octagonal cabinet, in the pics section, i will add photos tomorrow, of the back.

[Dewy]

As soon as I saw the question I was going to say French cleats as the strongest option.
They have the advantage that if you decide to move the cabinet, move house or just decorate it just lifts off the wall.

[ndru]

You need to allow enough room above the top of the cabinet to lift it up and drop it so that the two cleats mate. Failing to do this is a trap for new players.
[/list]

Just to add to DPB's tip, here's a tip I found in a woodworking magazine. It worked for me not long ago.

To quote..

First, rip two cleats to about 3" wide and cut them to length so they're about 1" shorter than the width of the back of your cabinet...this gives you some left-to-right right play.
..install the cleat on the wall so its level and about 2.5" below where the top of the cabinet will touch wall...

Now puch the cabinet in place against the wall and use a stepladder so you can work on the top of the cabinet [if you are installing a cabinet that doesn't extend to the ground you will obviously need to support it from the bottom].

Take the other cleat and drop it behind the cabinet with the bevel facing the back of the cabinet. It should drop into place with about 0.5" sticking above the top of the cabinet.

Mark a line on the cleat where it intersects with the back. Lift the cleat out and rip it to width. Be sure to rip it exactly to your line.

Pull the cabinet away from the from the wall and screw the cleat to the backside of the cabinet so the top edge of the cleat is flush to the top of the cabinet.

...lift the cabinet a few inches and place it on the cleat...[for cabinets that should touch the ground,]if the cabinet doesn't sit on the floor, remove one cleat and shave off a tad with a hand plane...if the cabinet rocks a bit on the cleat add a short strip or two of masking tape to the bevel on one cleat and that will tighten things.

The article recommends that you scribe your side panels to the wall first, then fit the cleat to the cabinet.

[Slavo]

For those of you interested I asked the question of David Charlesworth, because it was a picture of one of his cabinets I saw that got me thinking on the topic. He said that he makes his own mirror plates out of 1/8" brass plate, and rebated into the back of the cabinet. At most I guess you would see a couple of semi-circular brass plates above and below the cabinet, screwed into the wall (couldn't see them in the photographs of the cabinet). I guess another altenative is to install some brass cabinet hangers (brass plate with a key hole cut in it) like the ones Brusso and LV sell and rebate them into the back of the cabinet.

[LineLefty]

one for the BotheB I think!